NAB approves number of fresh references

ISLAMABAD - While giving approval to filing a number of references involving corruption and embezzlement of public money, Chairman National Accountability Bureau Admiral (Retd) Fasih Bokhari stressed the need to prioritise the cases for accountability with a focus on the recovery of colossal public money. Chairing the second board meeting he emphasised the need for taking up malpractice cases with regulatory authorities so that they could play their role more effectively to prevent the crime in the society. "If regulatory bodies take appropriate and timely action, the crime level can be reasonably brought down," he added. He urged to monitor the regulatory bodies carefully and warn them that any default on their part would be dealt with seriously. The meeting approved references against Abdul Rasheed, XEN Wapda, against Gulraiz Raza and officers of sales tax for causing loss to the public exchequer through bogus/fake sales refunds. In another reference, it was decided that the regulatory bodies be asked to explain as to the nature of action already taken by them so as to facilitate the filing of reference against the accused with the accountability courts. In Pakistan Railways Coop Housing Quetta scam when it was informed that all the allotment letters had been cancelled as the possession of land was still with Railways, the meeting decided to refer the case back to Pakistan Railways to hold departmental inquiry against the concerned officers who were instrumental to launch a housing society on the state-owned Railways land. The board authorised to hold an inquiry against Munawar Hussain Cheema, former Additional Deputy Commissioner (Consolidation) Lahore for illegal allotment of land, Muhammad Aslam Kachhela, former MNA Sargodha for allotment of plots in a fake housing society and former chief secretary KPK Javed Iqbal for accumulating assets beyond means. The committee accepted the plea bargain of Eshan Elahi, Director of Muslim Industrial Coop Corporation. The meeting also closed inquiries against Lal Bux Bhutto, former MPA Sindh, Pervaiz Ahmed Khan, MPA KPK, and Zarfar Altaf, former secretary agriculture, for lack of evidence and weak cases. Three other inquiries in different bank cases were also closed due to lack of evidence.